Name that wall

[Jellyfire]

Well limewashing sounds the simpler solution, it's in pretty good nick, but there may be less well preserved ones to uncover so might be safer skimming them I think. Will see what else turns up and the decide I think

There are a few holes that need filling, and I guess there may be some more serious work needed when I uncover more. Did you make up any of your own daub at all? Have seen you can buy it, but seems a bit silly for what is essentially mud? If so, did it work ok and how long does it take to dry to a solid finish?

 

[Penners]

might be safer skimming them

I would definitely put on a lime plaster skim. As well as the aesthetic benefits, this will fill holes, cracks, etc. that will be a source of draughts.

 

[robgil]

I made my own daub to fill holes however the really bad panels were photographed, removed, broken up , re-mixed and re-applied.
My walls are of mud and stud type construction, it could be yours are the same. Daub will set relatively fast, I added a small amount of lime to mine.
Daub does set to be quite hard, it's more workable than lime plaster and therefore more forgiving. The critical part of using daub is in its preparation, I found it easy to make it too wet and best to let it stand for a few days or more before using it.
I shall try and load up some photos later if I get the chance.

 

[middi]

Best results are obtained when daub is applied onto and trough the wattles if it is not too wet, Whilst it is easier to apply when it is wetter than it should be it will " craze" quite badly if the application coincides with a fast drying cycle.

It is a trial and error situation at the first attempt. No permanent damage can be done if it is applied too wet, it will be necessary to apply a " finishing" coat.

The majority of daub that was applied yesteryear, especially on the more " humble" cottages, was so well done that the internal ( and external) wall faces were just limewashed.

As to Robgil reusing and remixing the old daub, nothing wrong with this and a very noble act where conservation is concerned. I consider it taking things a tad too far.

( still, anybody is entiltled to have a " love affair" with whatever they like :wink: , I am worried for him in case his wife finds out)

Middi

 

[Jellyfire]

Will have a go at making my own Daub then, the pond opposite our cottage is practically dry after the droughts, Im guessing that was probably the source of our walls originally, Im sure it would appreciate being a few barrowfuls deeper and save me fair bit of digging. Now as for the Dung and Urine, think I'll go with the school of thought that it was a by product of the animals mixing it to start with! Photos would be great if you get a chance Robgil

 

[andrew gayton]

the inclusion of chalk or non hydraulic lime will greatly reduce shrinkage (although local subsoil may well include chalk, to greater or lesser degree). barley straw is best to reinforce. with regard to the inclusion of 'animal waste' - I am firmly of the view that it was coincidental rather than intentional.

 

[MdB]

the inclusion of chalk or non hydraulic lime will greatly reduce shrinkage

?? I've found that putty / hydrate lime mortars shrink more than NHL. It could be something I'm doing wrong though.

 

[andrew gayton]

hydraulic lime, in my opinion, is predominantly for civil engineers. No place for it in pre-industrialism vernacular buildings.

 

[Penners]

Will have a go at making my own Daub then, the pond opposite our cottage is practically dry after the droughts, Im guessing that was probably the source of our walls originally, Im sure it would appreciate being a few barrowfuls deeper

Is the pond on your land? If not, I should have a word with the land/pond owner before you start helping yourself to stuff from the bottom of his/her pond. People can be funny about things like that.

And remember that, if it's clay that you're digging out, be a bit careful how deep you go. The clay may be the pond lining.

 

[Jellyfire]

It's on common land, but it's just been cleared out so there are various piles of mud surrounding it, but I'll check with the people in the know before taking any. Need to have a look and see if there is clay or just sludge first anyway. Not sure my good lady wife would appreciate me coatIng the walls in smelly pond dredgings!

 

[Penners]

Don't imagine that the term "common land" means that nobody owns it.

 

[Jellyfire]

'the people in the know' being the parish council who own the relevant bit of common

 

[robgil]

Some pics.

This is how the walls looked to begin with.

Fire place wall,

Back wall.

All the paper came off the back wall.

I cleaned the timbers then either coated the old daub with a chalk plaster, patched up the daub around the edges and filled some holes and one panel was re-mixed.
My plaster followed the contours of the daub below and the re-mixed daub was applied to copy it's original contours. I am not a fan of perfectly flat, clean infill's in old walls, for me the appearance of old misshapen daub panels is much more pleasing.

This is how it turned out.

This is original limewashed.

This is remixed,

This has been repaired with more daub.

I shall load up some pics of the fire place wall in a bit.

 

[robgil]

There are more here , does this link work?

http://s84.photobucket.com/albums/k9/robertgilmore/livingdining%20room/

 

[Jellyfire]

End result looks great! Judging from the pics your daub was in a much more sorry state than ours. Have only got one infill that needs repair so far. Am going to try and mix up some daub and have a go at that one, the skim the ones I've uncovered so far to see how I get on. Am in no way wanting a modern flat finish either. Luckily!

How did you clean your beams incidentally? Nice honey colour you've got there. I klingstripped the ones I've done so far. They've come up well, but they're still quite dark compared to our one upstairs which had never been painted black.

Edit: link works fine. Wow you've done a cracking job on that room. Loving your wattle and daub!

 

[robgil]

End result looks great! Judging from the pics your daub was in a much more sorry state than ours. Have only got one infill that needs repair so far. Am going to try and mix up some daub and have a go at that one, the skim the ones I've uncovered so far to see how I get on. Am in no way wanting a modern flat finish either. Luckily!

How did you clean your beams incidentally? Nice honey colour you've got there. I klingstripped the ones I've done so far. They've come up well, but they're still quite dark compared to our one upstairs which had never been painted black.

Mine were coated in a mixture of dust, daub , cement , wall paper , glue and gloss.

Nb510 took care of the paint and a tooth brush, warm soapy water and a garden sprayer to rinse took care of the rest. It took absolutely ages and ages though.

 

[Jellyfire]

Ive only been using cold water for the final wash, maybe Warm soapy water will get a bit more of the black out. Think I'll go have a quick experiment...

 

[robgil]

Black?
That might be soot from an open hearth. Some of my wall studs had soot deposits but I have reason to believe the house caught fire sometime before 1760. I was as careful as I could be not to remove it.

 

[Jellyfire]

Black?
That might be soot from an open hearth.

Don't think it will be. Ive been told that the house probably started out as a single hall, but presumably by the time the carriage beams and floor joists were added any open hearth would have been replaced by the chimney and inglenooks. The black paint was slapped onto all the downstairs beams, it's this which is just diluting and spreading around as I wash each beam I presume. Think I probably just need to give them all another good clean down... Or live with the darker wood, which actually looks very nice so is no big loss

 

[Penners]

How did you clean your beams incidentally? Nice honey colour you've got there. I klingstripped the ones I've done so far. They've come up well, but they're still quite dark compared to our one upstairs

How long ago did you Klingstrip and wash? The beam will remain darker in colour until it has completely dried out.